Free Finding Love by Rachel Hanna Page A

that fear was gone, and she wanted to bond with that precious life growing inside of her as early as possible. She thought for a moment about the baby’s father, Eric, and wondered how he could not care about his child. She had greatly overestimated his character.
     
    When she thought about her own father and what he’d missed out on raising his kids, it was hard to imagine a father willingly giving that relationship up. But she knew that fathers - and mothers - made that choice everyday all across the world. Still, it was a sad choice to make.
     
    “I’m your momma,” she continued whispering to the baby as she sat on the side of her bed. “We’re going to have lots of fun together. I want you to know I’m going to do my best to be a good mother and teach you everything you need to know in this world. I had a big family, and you’re going to have lots of cool uncles who want to take care of you and protect you. And maybe one day you’ll even have a brother or sister.”
     
    She hoped that was true. That some man out there would love her and she’d love him, and he could be trusted with her heart. And that he’d have such a big heart that he could love someone else’s child and protect them with his life. Maybe it was a fairy tale, but she was still holding out hope that men like that existed out there. Somewhere.
     
    She was broken out of her conversation with the baby by her ringing cell phone. It was early in the morning for anyone who really knew her to call, so she ran across the room to grab it before it woke anyone else in the house up.
     
    “Hello?”
     
    “Addison? It’s Helen,” she heard her attorney say. The woman was as old as dirt with wrinkles that seemed so deep they might show her bones underneath soon. She smoked like a freight train, and her gravelly voice was impossible to miss.
     
    “Oh, hi, Helen. Something wrong?” Addison asked, her stomach already knotting up.
     
    “You might wanna sit down for this one,” she said, stopping mid sentence for a cough and then what sounded like a drag of her cigarette. Addison was starting to regret investing what little money she had into this woman. Hasty decisions end up making situations like this worse.
     
    Addison sat down in the chair beside her dresser. “Okay, I’m sitting.”
     
    “I’ll just cut right to the chase. Jim’s attorneys have drawn up papers where Jim gets everything. The house. The bank accounts. The cars.”
     
    “How is that possible?” Addison said.
     
    “Well, he’s claiming you didn’t deny your infidelity and there’s nothing proving he was ever unfaithful to you. You got any text messages or emails or anything showing his affair?”
     
    “No. We always talked in person… or argued, rather. Sometimes we had phone conversations, but Jim hates to text and he never emailed me. He was careful, Helen. He’s a freaking attorney. No offense.”
     
    “None taken. And I agree. He’s a rat bastard. But he’s a rat bastard with a lot of power around here, and he’s throwing it around something fierce right now.”
     
    “Shouldn’t I automatically get half of everything?”
     
    “No. Georgia isn’t a community property state. We have something called equitable distribution. That means anything bought or earned during the marriage is supposed to be distributed equitably. But, here’s the issue. Jim knows you have limited funds right now, and he knows you don’t want to spend your whole pregnancy fighting. He’s going to use that to either drag this out or force your hand.”
     
    “This isn’t fair…”
     
    “No, it’s not. But his plan, from what I’ve heard through the grapevine, is reveal your infidelity, your pregnancy, the whole thing. Ruin your career and reputation. So, sweetie, in the end you might get your used car back and a few thousand bucks that he hasn’t hid yet, but you’ll be screwed as far as your career and reputation.”
     
    Addison couldn’t catch her breath. She